Thankful Tuesday

1. The Aldi's near where the kids play flag football has closed for one month for remodeling. Before they closed we made one last trip, and we were delighted to find grapes on sale for $1/lb. I bought quite a few pounds of them! Yum!

2. Paul's parents were able to join us for the kids' two football games on Saturday. Paul's mom started a different type of chemo treatment last week because the one she had been on wasn't working. Praying that the side effects won't be too

severe and that this treatment will be effective!

3. Margie's foot surgery was successful last Wednesday. Now she's in the two month recovery process.

4. We got the bill yesterday for $500 for Paul's mole removal. If it had been scheduled one week earlier, it wouldn't have cost us a dime. I certainly hadn't budgeted $1,000 for the removal of one mole, but that's what it cost us this year. When I got the bill, I was again thankful for my

Ian playing center

job that makes it possible for us to pay for this medical expense.

5. I received my first paycheck on Friday. When looking at the paystub online, I discovered that the university is making contributions toward my retirement account in addition to my salary. I had been told when I signed my contract with HR that I wasn't eligible. So it was a pleasant surprise to see that I am eligible for retirement benefits.

6. The Steelers won on Sunday! The game wasn't aired, which is

Oliver playing nose tackle

very rare in our area, but even that was a blessing because I got more work done than I would have if I had taken the time to watch the game.

7. My Aunt Tina and a friend of mine both live in or near Jacksonville, Florida. I am relieved to know that neither of them lost their homes, and their electricity has been restored. We had been praying for them with Hurricane Irma!

8. We enjoyed seeing a BMX show, air show, puppet show, and

Ian playing center, and Oliver playing with his mouth guard.

magic show at the Balloon Fest on Saturday. Nadia, Ian, and I enjoyed a performance of The Diary of Anne Frank on Saturday night.

9. Shutterfly had another coupon code for getting 111 free pages in a photo book instead of the usual 20 free pages. This is the second time they've ever had a code like that. I put less time into the 109 page photo book than I usually do into a 20 page photo book, but I managed to get it done on Sunday (albeit it meant I didn't get work done for the university that day).

10. Oliver was excited about going to his Sunday School class at 9:00 and to Soul Patrol rehearsal at 10:45. What a change from last spring!! What a relief!!! Nadia was thrilled because she has a small solo in the song they are singing in October.

11. My first pair of progressive bifocals arrived in the mail on Saturday. I am definitely still adjusting to them. Sometimes stationary objects appear to be undulating to me, which is rather unnerving! I do love being able to read when I'm wearing them! I think though I still prefer contact lenses. I imagine I'll be contacting the eye doctor in the near future.

12. Ian doesn't mind when I am a forgetful tooth fairy. He lost three teeth in about one week! As long as he gets his $1, he doesn't mind if I hand it to him the next morning because I forgot to put it under his pillow during the night. He has lost 5 total teeth thus far. The three he lost recently were all from the top jaw.

Nadia fell asleep on the way home from gym class on Friday around lunch time!

Nadia also volunteered to be involved in the puppet show.